


"Pretending"

by madnephelite



Category: Station 19 (TV)
Genre: F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Feelings, Not Beta Read, Sexual Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-29
Updated: 2018-12-29
Packaged: 2019-09-29 13:44:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,123
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17204453
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/madnephelite/pseuds/madnephelite
Summary: Vic offers to be Ripley's date to his high school reunion.





	"Pretending"

Vic is annoyed. She just spend two hours doing her hair, shaving and getting her makeup done only to have Andy and Maya cancel on her last minute. Andy had some Ryan emergency with his dad and she doesn’t even remember why Maya canceled but whatever it is she is pissed at her two friends. All she knows is that she is looking fine tonight, was ready to go out and dance, drink and let herself go, maybe even take someone home with her at the end of the night but that ain’t happening anymore. She doesn’t want to go by herself and all her other friends already have plans. She really didn’t get all glammed up just to go home.

 

_ Damn you, Andy and Maya!  _ She curses.

 

She is about to leave the Station when she hears Sullivan talking to someone. Her curiosity gets the best of her, she is nosy after all, and she eavesdrops on her captain and his guest. She soon realizes that it’s Chief Ripley he is talking to and they are not talking business. 

 

_ I had no idea these two knew each other outside of work _ she thinks as she listens.

 

“Tonight is my high school reunion and I have to go alone because my date decided that she had better things to do. I hate going to those things by myself.” Ripley tells him.

 

“Then just don’t go and stop complaining. When I said that we should hang out again I meant grab a beer and talk sports and other things and not me listening to you whine about high school reunions.” 

 

“I can’t just not show up when I already rsvp'd that I would attend.”

 

“You are the fire chief. Just tell them there is an emergency and you can’t come. I don’t think anyone is gonna be upset with you about that.” Sullivan suggests.

 

“I guess I could do that. I was actually looking forward to going out but I will just probably head home instead. I’ll see you when I see you.” he says.

 

Vic realizes that Ripley is about to leave Sullivan’s office so she quickly and quietly leaves before he spots her and realizes that she has been listening in on their conversation. She watches him leave the station, head hanging low, shoulders slumped not at all looking like the stoic chief that she knows. She feels a bit sorry for him. Knows how much it sucks to have people cancel on you last minute. 

 

She decides to wait a few minutes before leaving herself just so that she doesn’t run into him outside but no such luck. When she exits the station she finds the chief still there. He is on his phone talking to someone. She assumes he’s calling his high school to tell them he is not coming but when he hangs up he looks frustrated and is muttering to himself. 

 

She just can’t help it.

 

“Chief, are you okay?” she asks startling him. He slowly turns around and it would be comical to anyone watching them but Vic didn’t expect it from him. His eyes are about to fall out of his head at the sight of her and she feels flushed. She hasn’t been looked at like that in a while and she will take a handsome guy looking at her the way the chief is looking at her right now.

 

_ Did I just admit that he is good-looking? _

 

“Hughes, wow!” is all he can say as his eyes wander up and down her body before finally settling on her face and she sees a sparkle in his eyes that she had never seen before.

 

“Sorry, that was inappropriate. I shouldn’t have said that.” he apologizes quickly but still looks at her in awe as if he is mesmerized. 

 

“It’s okay. I mean I do look hot tonight.” she says and he chuckles and she must admit she likes that sound.

 

“You look quite handsome yourself, chief.” she tells him and  _ Is her blushing? OMG, the chief of the Seattle fire department is blushing.  _

 

“Thank you, Hughes. I take it you have plans for tonight.” she walks closer to him and she can see him gulp while still giving her that intense look.

 

“I had plans but Andy and Maya ditched me and I don’t wanna go by myself so I’m just gonna go home. I’m pissed because I did all this” she points at her hair and dress “all for nothing.”

 

“I know the feeling. Same thing happened to me tonight.”

 

“Wait, you also had plans with Andy and Maya?” he lets out a laugh that probably can be heard inside the station. And Vic doesn’t know what possesses her to do it but before she can stop herself.

 

“Actually, I have to make a confession. I overheard you talking to Captain Sullivan. I know that your date ditched you and you don’t wanna go by yourself and I don’t wanna go out on my own and neither one of us wants to go home so, how about I join you at your reunion? That way I get to show myself off and you don’t have to call and cancel on your friends.” Ripley looks at her stunned, disbelieving. He doesn’t say anything and Vic thinks that he is not going to.

 

“I’m sorry. That was inappropriate. I don’t know what I was thinking. Forget that I ask! I will just go home. Good night, chief.” she is about to walk away when his voice stops her.

 

“Wait, I’m sorry! I just didn’t expect that. I should probably say no but I was really looking forward to spending some time with my old friends tonight so if you are still offering I would love if you could join me.” he flashes her a warm smile and it makes her weak in the knees.  _ He has a great smile. Stop thinking that Victoria. He is your boss’s boss’s boss. _

 

“Let’s go!” is all she says as he leads her to his car and opens the door for her.  _ He is quite the gentleman. _

 

They drive in silence for about 5 minutes before he finally speaks.

 

“Thanks for doing this. You really didn’t have to.”

 

“I really just didn’t want to spend the night alone at home. So, we are both doing each other a favor, really.” she smiles at him before turning on the music realizing what she had just done.

 

“Oh, I’m sorry, this is your car. Maybe you don’t want to listen to music. Here let me turn it off.” she goes to turn it off and he goes to stop her and their hands touch for a second before she is pulling away.

 

“Sorry.” they both say and realize just how awkward they are around each other.

 

“We probably shouldn’t act like this with each other at the reunion if I am supposed to be your girlfriend.” and she curses herself for the slipup.

 

“Sorry, I meant your date, not your girlfriend. God, I should probably just stop talking and pretend that I am a mute.” and it earns her another loud laugh from Ripley.

 

“Good to know that my babbling and awkwardness amuses you.” and he laughs some more.

 

“It’s been awhile since I laughed like this.So, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to laugh at you.”

 

“So, I am obviously Victoria but most people call me Vic. Only my siblings get to call me Vicky since they are all younger. So, call me that and I will be yelling at you again.” she warns him and he snickers.

 

“I like Victoria. I think it suits you. I’m Lucas, obviously. My mom and sisters call me Luke but I am perfectly okay with you calling me that too and Sully calls me Rip.” he replies.

 

“Sully as in Sullivan?“ he nods.

 

“I didn’t know that you two are friends. Sounds like you two are close since he has a nickname for you and all that.” she wonders if he will tell her more about that but she doesn’t have to wonder for too long.

 

“We used to be best friends 15 years ago. I was his commanding officer and I made a call that cost him someone very important and that was the last time we talked to each other as friends.”

 

“I’m really sorry. Can’t be easy losing a friend like that. Is that someone he lost the reason he is the way he is? I mean he never sits with us for dinner or breakfast and he doesn’t seem to smile ever or even enjoy the job, I feel.” when he doesn’t answer she decides to change the subject.

 

“So do we have a story?” she wonders.

 

“A story?” she can hear the confusion in his voice.

 

“How we met, I mean. Like if people ask what do I say? It’s rom com 101. We need to have a story so we don’t end up giving it away that I am not really your girlfriend, I mean date. I meant to say date. Sorry.” that’s the second time she slips up and she wants the ground to swallow her whole.

 

“I think the truth is always best. We met at work and you asked me out.”

 

“Wait, I asked you out?” she raises her eyebrow.

 

“Well, it was your suggestion to come with me so yeah, you asked me out.” he chuckles and she guesses that he is right.

 

“Okay. And what if there is some gorgeous former girlfriend or crush that is interested in you and you are stuck with a fake date.”

 

“Doesn’t matter. Pretty sure I’m the one showing up with the most beautiful date on my arm.” and she is glad that his eyes are on the road otherwise he would see her blushing everywhere.

 

He doesn’t apologize for the comment like he did before though.

 

They continue the drive in silence with just the radio playing quietly in the background and Vic humming along to John Legend’s and Ariana Grande’s version of Beauty and the Beast and she can’t ignore the irony of the song and her and Ripley.

 

When they arrive at his old school he holds the door open for her again, links their arms and leads her inside the building. They both gasp at how beautifully everything is decorated. The theme is fairy tales and Vic is just taking everything in. She is speechless at how gorgeous everything looks.

 

“Everything okay?” he asks.

 

“Yeah, It’s just, I have never been to a high school reunion and this is really pretty. I feel like a princess.” she replies.

 

“You are Victoria so you should actually feel like a queen.” and she laughs at how cheesy that sounds.

 

“Does that make you my king?” she teases him.

 

“No, I’m still  _ YOUR _ chief.” and the way he just called himself  _ her _ chief makes her shiver but before she can say anything else someone had spotted them and is calling Ripley’s name and she sees him hugging several people and he looks happy to be here. She is glad that she offered to come. At least someone is happy and she is not alone at home.

 

His friends notice her and Ripley puts his arm around her waist and pulls her closer to him making her shiver once more. She really could get used to this.

 

“This is my girlfriend, Victoria.” and she can’t believe that he actually just called her his girlfriend. She was supposed to be just a date and then she kept on calling herself his girlfriend and now he actually did call her that too and she can feel her cheeks burn. Everyone is looking at her and she just smiles at them and shakes their hands and tells them she is happy to be here.

 

She observes Ripley throughout the night. He looks at ease and somehow younger and carefree. She realizes that he really needed tonight. He has so much responsibility with his job and here he can be just Lucas. It also makes her realize how unfair she had been to him when she yelled at him a couple of weeks ago at the skyscraper. 

 

At first she doesn’t realize that he has caught her staring at him and when he flashes her a smile that shows his perfectly white teeth and dimples she blushes and smiles back. Next thing she knows he is walking towards her and holding out his hand.

 

“Would you like to dance with me?” he asks and she happily accepts. She did plan on dancing tonight after all.

 

They join his friends on the dance floor and the song changes and it starts playing Beauty and the Beast and they both start laughing.

 

“It’s our song!” they both joke and laugh as they start swaying to it, her arms around his neck, his hands on her hips and they move just a little bit closer so there is no space left between them. She rests her head on his shoulder and they just stay like that for what feels like eternity. Vic notes that it feels quite intimate and all they are doing is dancing. She knows that she will journal about this later on. This is definitely not the night she was expecting but she is not complaining. In fact she is happy that Andy and Maya ditched her. This is so much better than clubbing.

 

The song ends and Vic looks up, their eyes meet and there is a sparkle in his and it takes her breath away. Their heads move on their own accord but before anything can happen someone is talking into a microphone and they are quickly pulling apart. Vic can’t believe that this just almost happened. Part of her is happy that they were interrupted and another part is disappointed because she wanted to know what his lips would feel like on hers. Were they as soft as she imagined them to be? She would never know.  _ It’s probably for the best _ she tells herself.

 

She is deep in thoughts that she doesn’t even notice that he is no longer by her side but on the stage, thanking his friends for voting him Most Likely to Succeed and he tells them a bit about his job and how he loves being a firefighter and how much every life saved means to him and how the fire department is one big family and he is happy to have them in his life because he can always count on them. Vic realizes that he is looking at her during that last part of his speech and she feels a bit overwhelmed by his intense gaze. She decides to go and get some fresh air.

 

He finds her ten minutes later, tells her that he had found her sooner but wanted to give her some space. He figured that’s why she left the ball room without a word. They are standing in a cold hallway and he notices that she is shivering. He takes off his jacket and drapes it over her shoulders. His hands linger there for a moment making her shiver again but this time not beause of the cold. He quickly drops his hands as she thanks him quietly.

 

“I had a great time tonight. I’m sorry about what almost happened in there. That should not have happened. I hope you accept my apology.” she just nods, doesn’t know how she feels about all this. She thinks she felt something there but she knows that he is right. That should not have happened and nothing even happened but they should have never been in this position to begin with. He is her boss and she is basically still a rookie. 

 

“If you want I can drive you home. I’m really grateful that you came here with me. I can’t thank you enough. I really needed a time out.” and she is happy that she came here with him too. She saw a different side of him tonight. A side she really liked, maybe a little bit too much.

 

“I owe you an apology as well.” he looks at her confused.

 

“For the way I spoke to you the night of the skyscraper incident. I shouldn’t have yelled at you.” he smiles softly at her.

 

“I appreciate that, Victoria. I understood where you were coming from.” and she loves the sound of her name on his lips.

 

“I didn’t understand the same for you and I’m sorry. Making those decisions can’t be easy. I should have realized that when you told me the story about you and Sullivan.” he nods his head.

 

“I’m just gonna go and say goodbye to my friends and then we can leave.” 

 

“We don’t have to. If you wanna stay I don’t mind.” she tells him but he tells her it’s ok that he is tired anyway.

 

They leave five minutes later. She gives him directions to her apartment and they drive in silence.

 

Vic must have dozed off because next thing she knows is someone is nudging her on the shoulder, telling her to wake up. She finally opens her and sees Lucas looking at her adoringly. 

 

“We are here. Come on. I’ll walk you to your door.” he helps her out the car and they walk into her building. They linger at her door for a moment before she leans up and kisses him on the cheek.

 

“Thank you for tonight. I had a lot of fun.” she tells him before disappearing inside her apartment, not trusting herself to stay out there any longer with him without doing something really stupid.

 

She is leaning against her door and her mind is racing. It just won’t shut up. It’s been a while since she felt that kind of pull towards anyone and  _ so what if he is the chief of the fire department and older than me? Age is just a number.  _ She thinks. 

 

And before she can talk herself out of it, she is swinging the door open ready to run after him only to find him standing in front of her. She gulps as he takes a deep breath and crashes his lips against hers kissing her like there is no tomorrow. Vic melts against him as he grabs her ass and lifts her up. She instinctively wraps her legs around his waist pressing him closer to her as he walks them into her apartment and closes the door shut behind him.

 

This is definitely not how Vic pictured this night to end and this is probably going to be complicated and messy but she thinks it might be worth it.

 


End file.
